Someone Put Money in the Jukebox
by Nightcrawlerlover
Summary: AU oneshot. Yami thinks about the invention known as the jukebox at a diner, as well as how it came to be before his thoughts turn to something else. Prompt was "jukebox".


**Hey there! Here's a new Yu-Gi-Oh oneshot that I cooked up one day. I was reading my copy of the book "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings", which is an autobiography by Maya Angelou (who is a great author and writer). Then, on page 229, there was one phrase that caught my eye. **

**"Someone put money in the jukebox and drinks were served to all the customers."**

**I took a liking to the beginning part of that very phrase, and instantly thought it would make a good title for a story, especially a Yu-Gi-Oh fanfic. So this is what I came up with. Hope you like it! :) **

**Disclaimer: Genius Kazuki Takahashi owns Yu-Gi-Oh. I own the fanfics I cook up from time to time.**

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Someone Put Money in the Jukebox

_"Ninety-nine percent of the world's lovers are not with their first choice. That's what makes the ____jukebox __play." _  
**-Willie Nelson**

Sitting next to the jukebox in the diner, Yami Yugi smiled as the beginning notes of the song Don't Rock the Jukebox began playing and Alan Jackson's voice began singing.

He had to admit, the machine these mortals called a ‛jukebox' was quite something to look at, as well as listen to. According to the entry on the jukebox on the website for Wikipedia that he came across while using his friend Yugi Moto's laptop one day, the term _jukebox_ "came into use around 1940, apparently derived from the familiar usage _"juke joint"_, derived from the Gullah word _"juke"_ or _"joog"_ meaning disorderly, rowdy, or wicked".

One such jukebox Yami had heard about was the 1946 Wurlitzer Model 1015. It was referred to as the "1015 bubbler" and offered 24 selections. More than 56,000 were sold in less than 2 years and it was considered a pop culture icon. It was also quite popular back in the 1950s, especially in diners and all sorts of places.

Yami smiled at the thought of seeing a ‛juke joint' for the first time, and as he listened to the music coming out of the jukebox, he imagined being around in the 1940s and checking out the juke joints for a bit before taking off and wandering around the United States, Europe and then the other countries, such as Russia and China. In his mind, being a drifter and seeing the events that shaped history in the U.S.A sure sounded awesome.

With that, Yami made up his mind. As soon as the final song on the jukebox faded away into silence, he got up and left the diner and headed for home.

He could hardly wait to tell Yugi about his observations of seeing what could've happened if he had been experiencing the events that had shaped the history of America.

When he got home to the Turtle Game Shop and stepped into Yugi's bedroom, Yugi was sitting on his bed reading a book on his lap. Yugi looked up and grinned upon seeing Yami.

"Hey there, Yami," he said. "How was it at the diner?"

Yami smiled. "It was quite nice, actually. And get this, Yugi – I took your advice and made sure to check out the neat invention known to all as the jukebox while there. It sure was awesome, to say the least."

"Really?" said Yugi, his amethyst eyes lighting up at Yami's mention of the jukebox. "Cool! I'm glad I've seen those inventions as well myself." He paused. "Also, it's a good thing I showed you the history of the jukebox online at Wikipedia one day, too."

Yami nodded. He also felt glad that Yugi had taken the time to show him the inventions that had come into being in the five thousand years between when he had been sealed in the Millennium Puzzle and when Yugi had solved it, thus freeing him.

Quite the country this place they called America was. It certainly was the ‛land of opportunity', according to some mortals whose conversation he had overheard one day.

_Freedom, indeed, _Yami thought. At those words his face lit up and he smiled. In his mind, freedom was definitely not something to take for granted, but a concept to keep in mind every day and every night.

Then a lyric from the song "American Soldier" by Toby Keith came to him.

_I'll bear that cross with honor, ‛cause freedom don't come free._

That, in turn, reminded him of another sentence related to that.

_**Freedom is not free.**_

As those words danced in his mind, Yami realized that they were very true. But then, his smile came back as he remembered the jukebox from a few hours ago, as well as all the songs that played on it.

_Ah, the things that these people often are able to accomplish and invent when they're not destroying each other in wars or battles, _Yami thought. _Well, sometimes that's how life is._

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**Well, I hope you like this oneshot as much as I did writing it. And it is true – the jukebox is a great invention, and when it comes to freedom, there is a price that's sometimes way too high and bloody (as all of us know all too well).**

**Anyway, nice comments and feedback is very much appreciated, of course. :)**


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